How to Stop Your Family From Swapping Sicknesses

When one member of your family gets sick, it can seem like only a matter of time before everyone else follows. With shared spaces and daily contact, viruses like the cold and flu can spread quickly.

Just because one person is sick, however, it doesn’t mean that the whole household has to be. With a few good habits and prevention strategies, you can reduce the chances of a house-wide outbreak.

At A&U Family Medicine in Sugar Land, Texas, Dr. Hammad Zaidi and our team want you to stay well this season with practical tips for keeping everyone healthy and stopping your family from swapping sicknesses.

How you swap illnesses

To prevent sickness from jumping from one family member to another, it helps to understand how germs spread. Illness occurs when viruses or bacteria enter the body, most often through the eyes, nose, or mouth. This can happen when you inhale infected droplets or touch contaminated surfaces and then touch your face. 

When someone who’s sick coughs, sneezes, or talks, they release tiny droplets filled with germs that may land on high-touch surfaces or be inhaled by someone close by. Sick people can also spread germs by coughing or sneezing into their hands and touching surfaces before washing. 

From the ride home from school to the dinner table, shared spaces and daily contact with your family make it easy for germs to hop from person to person.

Reinforce prevention habits

The best way to stop your family from swapping sicknesses is to reinforce habits that prevent germs from spreading. 

Practice good handwashing techniques so everyone knows how to properly lather and rinse away germs. Encourage family members to carry hand sanitizer so they can disinfect when handwashing isn’t an option.

Teach the family how to cough or sneeze into their elbow instead of their hands. Also, wipe down and clean shared items like TV remotes, door handles, and bathroom towels.

Small habits add up, especially during cold and flu season.

Strengthen your home’s germ defense

Germs can linger on surfaces for hours or days, so creating a healthier home environment can reduce the spread.

Open the windows or use air purifiers to improve air quality, and wipe down high-touch areas with disinfectant wipes regularly. Wash contaminated clothes, towels, and sheets in detergent at the recommended water temperature for the item or fabric. 

You don’t need to wash items separately, but you do need to wash your hands after handling dirty laundry. 

Set up a sick zone

Limiting exposure to an ill family member helps reduce the risk of others getting sick. Set up a comfortable, contained area for the sick person and encourage them to stay there until they’re no longer contagious. 

Respiratory viruses like the cold and flu can spread up to five days after symptoms improve, though you’re usually less contagious 24 hours after a fever breaks. 

Have a system in place for meals and trash and laundry collection to limit exposure to healthy members of the family. 

You can also take further precautions by getting the annual flu vaccine and the latest COVID booster. Vaccines help your immune system protect you against these viruses, preventing illness or reducing the severity or duration of symptoms.

If you need help managing family sickness, we have you covered. Our family medicine team can help you prepare and provide guidance when one member comes down with something. 

Call us today or book an appointment online. At A&U Family Medicine, we offer in-office and virtual visits.